Your Heart Is Like a Supernova
by Applesauce Jack
Summary: What was up with Warlocks? Sure, Mal had been the one to ask her, but she still should have known better. Now they just had to deal with it. Not bad for a first date, eh? I thought I'd write a lemon, pretty much. It's maybe not as pure lemon as some other fics, but I wanted to add some more to it, build it up. If that's not what you're interested in, fine. If it is, hey have fun.


**I though this would be neat. I kinda wanted to to a Lemon, and destiny is such a fun game I thought why the hell not. It's also a good way to write oneshots, is just a one time romantic entanglement. That's not to say that this isn't a relationship that continues after the story ends, it's just one that I won't continue to write about. Anyway, it was fun to write, and I hope you enjoy.**

**If you're one of the people interested in this sort of thing I listened to the Blade Runner soundtrack when writing this, so I'll put little boxes with numbers to represent when I'd recommend a song is played. It's mostly at the end of the fic, so don't feel bad if you forget about it.  
**

**[1] – _One More Kiss, Dear_**

watch?v=_m_htq9w9CY&list=OLAK5uy_kwWYbJ9MI9ALMqJdjVZ_cNJmOROOMc2Y0&index=6

**[2] – _Love Theme, Blade Runner Blues_, _Memories of Green_, **and **_Rachel's Song_ (Any or all should work)**

watch?v=-wBkKED42oo&list=OLAK5uy_kwWYbJ9MI9ALMqJdjVZ_cNJmOROOMc2Y0&index=5

watch?v=ECYLHiXvrBQ&list=OLAK5uy_kwWYbJ9MI9ALMqJdjVZ_cNJmOROOMc2Y0&index=7

watch?v=u1KfOMkyU_w&list=OLAK5uy_kwWYbJ9MI9ALMqJdjVZ_cNJmOROOMc2Y0&index=8

watch?v=YnwKeiJflBw&list=OLAK5uy_kwWYbJ9MI9ALMqJdjVZ_cNJmOROOMc2Y0&index=4

**Also, shout out to the stories _Vault of Gl(ass)_ and _Troubles of an Exo_ by _Destinyguy_. Fantastic porn.**

**Sorry for posting during No Nut November, I'm a bad.**

* * *

Your Heart Is Like A Supernova.

Warlocks were boring. Malcolm-10 knew this almost instinctually, as he was himself a hunter, and a damn good looking one too, if the polls were to be believed. In fact, he might just have a shot at the "Best Dressed Guardian" Nessus regional award. It was something he was proud of. So, he was entirely taken aback when a Warlock, one mind you which he had never met, seen, nor heard of, approached him in the tower, and, now this is the kicker, _with a notice from the Vanguard_, conscripted him into her fireteam.

At first, by the way she was dressed, he thought that maybe she was one of those new lights, the ones streaming in from the Cosmodrome as of late, but he was shocked when he saw that her ship was a genuine Hildian Seeker model. Only a few Guardians still had theirs back from their time in the Prison of Elders, and as far as Mal knew there was no way nowadays for a Guardian to pick up one of the awoken ships. Of course, it could have just been salvaged from the wreckage surrounding the Dreadnaught, or who knew where else. Maybe she was reefborn? She was Awoken, after all.

The two of them were already in Orbit before Mal thought to ask "Hey, bluebird. You got a name?"

"...Bluebird. I... like the sound of that." Her voice was delicate, something that Mal thought was best left to the city folk, not a badass immortal warrior who could hold the sun's fire in the palm of their hand.

Mal just groaned, careful to do it into the mic so that she could hear him. He'd called her bluebird because of the shader she'd added to the Ancient Apocalypse Bond she wore which gave the bird figure a neon blue glow. And now she had a nickname. Yay.

"Look, honeypot, I can't call you names for this entire... Sweetness? What exactly are we doing anyway?"

"I was told by Warlock Vanguard Ikora Rey that you were one of the foremost scouts of the planet Nessus. I am hoping to visit some Lost Sectors in the area to gather samples from high ranking Vex constructs on the planetoid, as well as a classified vanguard task concerning the Failsafe A.I. acting as the front's active vanguard liaison. I'm concerned that-"

Mal tuned out as she spoke. He sighed again, even harder. She was a damn tourist. Even if she had survived the Red War he doubted that she would be any good in a fight, especially if she had never been to Nessus since then. And all her gear was probably crap. It looked like she'd just taken the biggest overcoat she could find and threw it on. It completely hid her body in a vast purple bulk, and all she had on her arms was that bluebird and some wraps for he forearms that went out of style around the time of the SIVA Crisis. And her helmet was just a completely black mirror. It looked like someone had thrown a perfectly good Prodigal Hood into a fire pit. He found that her boots were surprisingly nice, though, almost to the knee, at least he thought so since he could barely see the turned down tops due to her coat, and with golden buckles holding them shut all down her calf. Weird the things you noticed.

" –Pyramidion and Valut of Glass may be drawing energy from the core-"

"Alright, you don't have to explain it all. I'm just going to be there to help you navigate, fight the locals, and the like. I got that right, sunshine?"

"Bluebird."

"Pardon?"

"You've called me Honeypot, Sweetness, and Sunshine since we've reached orbit. Call me Bluebird."

"…Right. Whatever you say Pumpkin."

**(000)**

They landed on the Artifact's Edge, popular for its central location and the fact that taking the plunge from the Vex spire at its center was always an exhilarating way to start a patrol. As Mal hurtled towards the ground he briefly considered letting himself hit, but he wasn't a Thanatonaut. He'd leave that for the psychos like Osiris or that Mir guy on Io. So he briefly activated one of his second jumps to lessen his momentum, then landed in, what he considered to be, a rather dashing roll.

The Warlock took the lift.

It took so long for her to reach the bottom that Mal had practically run out of ammo for his sniper killing the nearby Vex.

"So… we doin' this any time this century Sugar Plum, or were you planning on the Vex dying of boredom?"

"Did they? Did boredom kill them?" she asked sounding genuinely interested. She stooped to poke at the ruined Vex juicebox, that weird milk stuff dribbling from the shattered container. "Fascinating. I need to study this, the ballistic properties of concentrated boredom…"

Now Mal didn't know if she was joking or genuinely interested…

"No… Dumpling, I killed these Vex."

"Oh… That's disappointing. We nearly had some very interesting data there. Anyway, aren't you calling me Bluebird anymore? I thought I'd told you to call me that. Where is the Conflux? It is a lost sector, though how anyone can find it with such an unspecific name-"

"I know the one, Peanut."

Just then she gave him such an odd look through that obsidian helmet of hers, almost like a glare it was so sharp, that he almost fumbled his revolver as he pulled it from his hip.

"What?"

"Bluebird."

"I'm sorry?"

"Stop changing the nickname."

"Fine, fine. You're the boss Moonbeam."

**(000)**

Mal played with his knife while the warlock dug through the remains of the Vex Minotaur that had lurked in the final chamber of the sector. He wasn't particularly interested, but noticed when she pulled out the machine's juicebox, still intact though sporting some impressive cracks.

"Whatcha got there, Applejack?" he asked.

"Unstable Radiolaria."

"Oh?"

"Yes. This particular formulation is causing some abnormal behaviour in nearby vex. Furthermore it causes-" Without warning the thing burst in a spray of luminous white fluid and covered her in a thick slime of vex milk.

The warlock just stood there for a moment, still as a statue and dripping sparking Radiolaria onto the floor of the Vex chamber. The silence was incredible. Then the laugh broke it.

"Bwahaah, ha-ha, ha heh haahh!... Ph-h-ha-ha-ha... A ha, hah, haa..." Mal wasn't the one laughing. In fact he was still overcoming the shock of the image before him when the warlock had started guffawing. She held her sides and shook with laughter, stumbling around and wiping at the visor of her helmet trying to clear her vision. Eventually she sat on the edge of a vex construct. Leaning against it heavily, breathing hard, she looked down at herself, and then broke into another storm of giggles.

Mal _was_ going to ask if she was okay but decided against it. She wasn't okay. She was a nut. Even so he wasn't prepared for what happened next.

As the warlock's laughing died down she stood up and looked down at her coat. She tried brushing the viscous white liquid off with her gloves but it just spread around like glue. When she moved her hand away it strung along with it in long thin ropes.

"This is interesting... The consistency of this batch is very strange... And besides, unpowered Radiolaria usually evaporates in conditions such as these... No, drinking it's no good. I must remember Kabr. Hmm... I suppose I should study it now before anything can spoil the data." she said, and with that began undoing the buttons on her coat.

"H- hey, uhh. What're you doing, Babyface?"

"I'm removing my coat to run some diagnostic studies on the Radiolarian fluids."

"Uh, are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Is the atmosphere breathable here?"

"Um... I guess?"

"Then I'll be fine. Thank you for your concern, Malcolm-10."

She laid the coat on the floor of the chamber and removed her helmet. Her hair fell about her ears with curious volume in a sort of bob, the bangs hanging to just above her eyes. It was pure white. Her face was more grey than blue, strange for an Awoken, and she had white paint on her face in a traditional pattern, with a strip of white down the middle of her lips and chin and one long one across he bridge of her nose and under each eye. Her eyes were shining silver. And she was beautiful, more so than Mal was expecting. He thought that she'd be homely at best, but she had a cute button nose, pinker than the rest of her face, and her cheeks were strangely rosy too, considering her very grey complexion. Something he hadn't though he would like but did anyway was the curve of her jaw and her almost sharp chin.

When she saw him looking she smiled nervously, looking back at him through her low bangs. Mal looked away, studying the right angled geometric architecture of the Vex structure, watching circuits twist around and around in pale chalky stone. But he couldn't help himself. He looked back. She had her gloves off now, though her hands were still covered by the gloves of her bodysuit. Mal was curiously disappointed to see that her hands were covered. She still had her boots on as they had miraculously avoided the splash of Radiolaria.

The warlock looked a little funny walking around in a skin-tight bodysuit and knee high boots and nothing else. She bent over, hand extended to let her Ghost examine her robes and Mal got a fantastic view of her butt. It was pear shaped, and looked quite firm from what he-

Mal shook his head. What the hell was he thinking? He coughed a little, and moved forwards, letting his own Ghost out to examine the robes with the warlocks. Before it went it gave him a pointed look.

"Shut up..." he muttered.

"Pardon?" asked the warlock, turning to look at him. She had her hands on her knees, still bent over. Mal could see the swell of her breast through the space between her arms and swallowed.

"Ahem." he coughed. "Uhh... do, um. Do you want my cloak?"

"... What for?"

"Y'know. To, uh... Cover up a bit."

"What? Cover what?"

"Uhh... n-never mind, Bluebird."

Bluebird was the wrong thing to say. She smiled at him, and Mal felt something where his gut should be twisting. Her cheeks really puffed up when she smiled. It was cute. She didn't say anything, though, just turned back to her examination, squatting down and resting on the balls of her feet. While she was rummaging through the pocket of her coat for some instrument or other Mal turned away. He was glad he had a helmet on even if he couldn't physically blush. This was going to be an awkward assignment. He pulled his cloak's hood further over his head.

It was some time before he had the courage to look back, and it was only because of the warlock's gasp of "Oh, that's odd..."

What he saw when he looked was that countless tendrils and vines had begun growing from Bluebird's coat, writhing and twisting, they looked organic at first but upon closer inspection they showed an iridescent metallic sheen. Mal stood quickly.

"Malcolm-10, look at this. Isn't it just fascinating? It's like this batch Radiolaria is a proto-fluid for organic Vex! A primordial soup for a new type of life! Maybe it has something to do with the Black Garden, some tangential-"

"Nope." Mal said. "I'm not doing this, not today. No tentacles." and he briskly walked over to the writhing mass and scooped up the warlock. "The Inomina is enough for a lifetime, please no." The tentacles were just wrapping themselves around her forearms when he pulled her away.

"But, the data!"

"You ever hear what curiosity did to the cat?"

"But... think about what we could have learned... I was just about to probe them."

"That's what you think..." Mal muttered, shuddering. He set the warlock down when they reached the exit of the Conflux and she looked at him strangely, crossing her arms under her breasts and sitting on a rocky shelf of the nearby terrain.

"I liked that jacket," she said, pouting and staring unwaveringly at him. It wasn't angry, but it wasn't kind either.

"Look, Bluebird. I don't think that stain's ever going to come out."

The warlock slumped, her shoulders sagging and she rested her hands on her knees. "Yeah, you're probably right."

"Probably? The thing was _growing tentacles._ You did see that part, right?"

"Yes, I saw it. I was on the verge of a scientific breakthrough you know."

"You wanna know my opinion? I didn't like where that was headed. When tentacles are involved... stories like that never end well."

"Stories?"

"L-look. The point is... Do you... wanna..."

**(000)**

Bluebird was surprised when Malcolm-10 asked her if she'd like to get a drink with him. After all, the EXO couldn't ingest either food or drink. She supposed it was a programmed desire to help him accept his EXO body, she'd heard about that from a Guardian that had spent some time in the Bray Futurescape, but even disregarding that it still came out of nowhere.

The worse part was that in the confusion of the moment she'd actually accepted.

"So, uh... Um... how about this, I know a place in the Last City, not too many people go there, but it's a nice place. Uh... we could, um, go there."

"What is this establishment called?"

"Uh, the, umm... It's the Sexy Lure..."

"Oh." Bluebird raised an eyebrow. "Sounds... Particular." She didn't know what it was she meant by 'particular,' but Malcolm-10 seemed to have an idea. He rocked back and forth on his heels and played with his hands, interlocking the fingers and then pulling them apart.

"We could go somewhere else, if you like. It really is a nice place, nothing like the name, but if you'd rather-"

"It will be suitable, Malcolm-10."

"Right, right. I'll, uh... see you there, Bluebird."

"Malcoolm-10."

"Yes...?"

"When?"

"Oh, uh, how does, um, Friday night at... seven sound?"

Bluebird didn't know what suitable meant in a situation such as this. What was expected in such a cultural ritual? Were there specific events or motions that would occur such as bowing or... light forbid dancing? How would the commercial transactions be handled? Bluebird found herself at a disadvantage, not knowing what currency was used in the city. She supposed it was probably Glimmer, but she had seen some strange coins around as of late, and wondered if perhaps a new form of payment was emerging.

Still, the solace was that she had time to prepare.

"I'll see you there, Malcolm-10." With that she returned to her ship waiting in orbit.

"You know," her Ghost said. "He was right. From many examples of fiction in the Open City Archive, many tales that involve tentacles end... rather poorly for the parties involved, especially young women."

"Oh, what am I going to do, Ghost? I have no idea what a cultural ritual such as this entails. I'll have to do some research. Set course for the Tower and begin a search for any archive posts in relation to keywords 'date,' 'relationship,' or 'fling.'"

"Okay, Guardian. As you say..."

**(000)**

While her Ghost compiled relevant documents Bluebird's first move was to ask likely persons about what to expect. It should have been a sign that she was _clearly_ not in her right mind when she first went to Petra Venj for advice. It was the third week in the curse's cycle, and Petra was in the Rheasilva overlooking the blighted terrain when Bluebird asked her.

"You want advice on _what?_"

"Relationships. I have been asked by Malcolm-10 to see him at seven o'clock for a drink at the Sexy Lure." Petra turned away, to accept a data tablet from a nearby corsair, nodded thanks, then turned back.

"Look, Guardian, I don't know if I can help you. My advice? Just don't overthink it, but please, if you don't have anything you can do for the Dreaming City I need to get back to work."

When she left Bluebird spent some time charging the blind well, then visited Mara Sov's empty throne world. She lounged for a moment in The Queen's throne, but it felt… wrong, so she left.

The next person Bluebird went to speak with was Sloane, followed by Ana Bray, then Hawthorne, and even the Failsafe A.I.

None of them had anything to say, though Ana Bray had sympathized, and the Failsafe had wished her best of luck while at the same time providing less than helpful commentary doubting the EXO anatomy.

Her breakthrough came when she spoke to the shipwright Amanda Holliday.

"Oh, you mean Mal," Holliday said, a glint in her eye. She grinned as she set down her spanner and rested her hands on her hips. "Y'know, you don't strike me as his type."

"Type?" Bluebird asked. Holliday didn't answer the query, so bluebird tagged the word for later research while the shipwright continued.

"So, what was it you wanted to know? I'd be glad to help a Guardian in need, though to be honest I'm probably better with machinery than men."

"How is it done?"

"What?" Holliday looked a little taken aback at first.

"The ritual."

"Oh. Look, you're making this sound like something hive, but that's the wrong idea. This isn't a formal sort of occasion, it's supposed to be something fun for the both of ya."

"Oh. How so?"

"Y'know, enjoying each others company, and so forth."

"If that was all wouldn't he ask me on a patrol or reconnaissance? Something of the like?"

"Well, a battlefield doesn't have a real _romantic_ ambiance."

"Ambiance?"

"You know. A mood."

"Oh. So he plans to seduce me..."

"Well... yeah, bluntly."

"I... have no experience with… seduction."

"Don't worry about it girl, I'll help you out, but look here. I'm little swamped now, and you said your date was on Friday, yeah? Come on over to my place then and I can wrangle Tess to help me make sure your night goes smoothly."

Bluebird thanked Holliday for her help, then returned to her own quarters in the tower. Her Ghost had found the documents she wanted.

**(000)**

Bluebird spent most of the next two days pouring over the data that her Ghost had found for her. She started going through the data she had pinged, and going through the things highlighted by her Ghost that were related but didn't contain her keywords. Still, some of the archived documents and discs were only stored in hard copy form, and she had to endure the examining looks of Tower couriers and archivists whenever she asked for certain documents or had them delivered. It still wasn't enough. Unsurprisingly the Vanguard Archives didn't have much material regarding interpersonal romance in their databanks, so reluctantly she donned an unassuming brown cloak and ventured into the city.

It took Bluebird almost an hour to find the establishment she was looking for with the help of her Ghost. When she entered the store she stared with open shock at the array of lewd and arousing media. Pornography was something that Bluebird had heard of, but never experienced as she had been busy fighting the darkness or learning from warlock mentors, and perhaps this was too much for a first time viewer.

She was shocked when she came to the 'Guardians' section. Plenty of the works were text based erotica, but many were also video or images. One claimed to have Walock Vanguard Ikora Rey herself starring with both Vanguard Commander Zavala and the late Hunter Vanguard Cayde-6, but the Cayde-6 on the cover had orange eyes instead of blue, and the Ikora Rey had a different structure to her face, as well as much larger mammary glands. Bluebird looked down at her own and pulled her cloak closer around her. Strangely the actor portraying Vanguard Commander Zavala was very accurate... perhaps she'd ask him... no. No that was a very bad idea.

Bluebird was beginning to feel very overwhelmed, so she addressed the man behind the counter, managing to do so without looking him in the eyes. He looked bored, with dark bags under his eyes. He was reading an erotic magazine featuring a nearly purple awoken girl and a snake on the cover just covering the bits people would pay to see. There was a cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth, and the ash on the end had built up quite impressively.

"Excuse me, sir?"

"…Yeah?"

"May I ask? What is your most conservative piece of video available for purchase?"

"Conserva-" the man folded his magazine away. "Look lady, this is a porn shop. We show everything. You want something more '_conservative'_ then good luck finding it."

"Oh. W-well in that case, do you have anything involving an E-EXO, perhaps?" Bluebird asked, blushing.

"Male or female?" said the man, ash drifting from the end of his cigarette into a perfectly placed ashtray.

"Um, one m-male."

"And the other or others?"

"Um, a non-EXO, please…" said Bluebird, looking very studiously at the floor. There was a _very _strangely shaped stain there and-

"Gender?"

"Female…" and it just kept reminding her of the shape of-

"Oh, I see. And if she's Awoken?" The comment broke her concentration on the stain.

"It d-doesn't m-matter."

"Well. I'll be just a moment, madam," the man said and moved into the back of the shop, snuffing his cigarette into the ashtray. While she waited Bluebird examined the impressive array of apparatus displayed both behind the glass counter and on the walls of the shop. Bluebird almost took one to examine more closely, but she quickly retracted her hand when the man returned.

"Alright. This'll do you good. Some people are surprised when they see what an EXO's packing, so consider this an education, or whatever." He lit a cigarette and took a deep pull. He exhaled considerately off to the side, the cigarette falling again into the corner of his mouth.

"Oh, this is a purely a-academic acquisition, sir."

"... I bet. So, these come to about 300 glimmer cubes, and hey, how bout for another 150 I throw in this toy," the man threw a small pink package on the counter, "for, ah... academic purposes."

Bluebird looked at the package and bit her lip.

She spent the rest of the second day watching the videos. They did not help.

**(000)**

Thursday. It was here. Three days of waiting over. Bluebird felt almost like throwing up. What was with her? Perhaps it was related to the bizarre Radiolaria she had been exposed to? In any case she supposed that seeing a medical officer wouldn't be uncalled for, but... In all honesty it was probably just nerves.

Bluebird sighed and knocked on Amanda Holliday's door. A few moments of waiting and Holliday opened the door. She was wearing a pair of torn and stained denim jeans and a white tank top. She was barefoot.

"Oh, hey Guardian! I'm glad you came. Come on in," she said, puling the door wide open. "So, uh... What can I call you? I mean, I don't want to just call you Guardian all night..."

"Oh, you can call me Bluebird."

"Bluebird?"

"Yes."

"You mind if I just call you Blue?"

"Not at all." There was another knock at the door.

"Oh, that must be Tess. Make yourself comfortable while I go get the door, 'kay Blue?" Amanda said and moved back down her entry hall.

Holliday's quarters were nice if cramped. Almost every surface was covered with some mechanical contraption or some tools, it didn't matter. Only a small table set between two old worn couches covered in blankets was relatively clear. Bluebird took a seat on one of the couches, resting her elbows on her knees, trying to take in every detail of the room while she waited for Amanda and Tess.

"Something to drink, Blue?" Amanda asked as she she stomped back into the room. Tess followed her. She wore a surprisingly casual grey zip up hoodie, rolled up to the elbows and a pleated skirt that went down past her knees. Underneath she had stockings. On her arms were a truly strange amount of bracelets. Tess smiled and moved to take Bluebird's hands.

"Thank you Guardian for coming to us. It will be my pleasure to help you look your very best for Malcolm."

"You knew-"

"I told her about your arrangement. Y'know, so I could get her to help."

"Oh..."

"Don't look so glum about it!" Tess laughed, a trademark smirk and glint in her eye. Though, the glint may just have been because she was Awoken, like Bluebird. "You're going to have a grand time! Now, I've brought a few samples here of what I've got for fancy dress. I want you to try these on and we'll just see how they look."

"You can change over here, Blue," said Amanda, opening the door to her bedroom.

"I want to see everything on you. Oh! this is going to be so fun!" Tess squealed, and threw herself down onto one of the two couches.

Bluebird took the bags and almost staggered under their weight. What in the world was Tess packing? Bluebird supposed she would soon find out.

**(000)**

**[1] **It was only 6:50, but Mal was worried that Bluebird would be a no show. She didn't seem like the type to bail like that, but the doubt kept nagging at him. 'What if' was a dangerous question. Every time the door of the place opened he would twist in his booth to look, hoping and dreading that it would be her. Mal was just about to leave when he saw her. He almost dropped the drink he was holding. If you had told him that this girl was a Guardian... Well Mal would have believed you, since she was still wearing her warlock bond.

Bluebird was wearing a blue sequin dress that went down to her knees. It both clung to her body showing off every curve and line in a shimmering dance of light while at the same time hanging loosely off her frame. The neckline was dangerously low, diving to just between her perky breasts, and the straps were thin. The blue light from her bond reflected shockingly on the dress. Her legs beneath it were long and smooth, and her hips were curved like they were made to show off her slim waist. And even through all that Mal could tell that she was well muscled. While she was skinny, she wasn't frail. Every inch of her body was pure lean muscle. Mal was sure he would have licked his lips if he'd had lips.

Or a tongue for that matter.

Mal stood and waved, and Bluebird saw and came over. She was smiling nervously when she sat down across from him. Her hands were clasped in her lap, and she wasn't able to look him directly in the eye.

"I'm, ah, glad you could make it. You look lovely tonight."

"Oh, thank you. You look lovely too..." Mal doubted he looked even close to that, not with her in the room. All he had on was a white button up shirt, black vest, and black pants. He was naturally coloured a sort of burgundy, and his red eyes and heavy brow gave him a sort of unity of appearance. It was nothing like her though. Practically the opposite.

Lilting tunes from before the golden age, the languages and lyrics lost to time flowed through the place like liquid romance. But Mal almost felt like he was marooned on a desert island. This was going to be a rough night.

"W-would you like something to drink?"

"Yes, please." Bluebird said in a quiet voice. She looked directly into his eyes when she said it, and Mal shivered a little when she looked away. He leaned out of the booth and waved to the bartender. he nodded and sent over one of the serving frames that took orders and bussed in this place. It shuffled up to the table and held out a notepad, mimicking waiters in other establishments.

"I'll have another one of these," Mal said lifting his still full glass, "And she'll have... Give her the Bubbly Blue?" Mal looked at her when he said it and was relieved when she nodded slightly and smiled nervously. He grinned back but wasn't sure how well it translated. She seemed to understand, though.

The frame turned the notepad to Mal, and he nodded that it was correct before it marched away, beeping a string of binary as it left.

"I don't drink often," said Bluebird.

"Y'know, As much as I'd like to, I don't really get to either," Mal said and chuckled a little.

"Thank you for ordering for me," Bluebird said, smiling. "I'd have never been able to choose."

"They're all the same, really. At least, I think so."

"Right."

"...So, what have you been up to lately?"

"Truthfully, I've been worrying about tonight. I did a lot of research on the dating ritual, but research in the area is rather inconclusive... At least in vanguard archives."  
"So, is this some sort of experiment then?"

"In a way. It's more out of personal interest than academic purposes."

"Well, that's good to hear."

"Yes," she said and smiled again.

Their drinks arrived, and Mal thanked the frame. The glass deposited in front of Mal was identical to the one he had before him, but Bluebird's was... glowing. It popped and fizzed like a Skip Grenade.

"You're sure this is safe to drink?" asked Bluebird, gently poking the side of the glass.

"I dunno..." said Mal. "You wanna switch?"

The awoken girl just made a face of concentration, then threw her head back and downed it in one go. Mal was shocked. He could _see _it going down. It was a bluish purply light trickling down the inside of her neck, lighting her up like a lava lamp. It drew a perfect line right between her breasts, and Mal wished he could follow it further.

"Wow," Mal said. "You're glowing."

Bluebird's glass hit the table again with a "thunk."

"Thanks," said bluebird, grinning a lot more wildly now.

Mal grinned too. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad?

**(000)**

It was hours later, maybe even the early morning, and Bluebird was feeling very fuzzy. Tingly, even. She could only really remember the first drink, but that was fine. She liked the way that she could see the sparks moving through her veins if she looked closely, and she suspected that Mal liked it too. He didn't stop looking at her, he didn't even blink, not that she'd noticed. Could he blink?

"Hey, Mal," she said, resting her face on her palm, elbow on the table. "Do you blink?"

"Um, yeah, I do."

"It's just, recently a lot of small questions have been floating around in my mind... Like, for instance, have you ever heard of a Guardian with only one arm?"

"I mean, Asher Mir has-"

"No, I mean, after they've been resurrected. Like permanent? Like, do you suppose that if Crota were to cut off a Guardian's arm, would it grow back?"

"I'm not sure... I mean, Guardians get disintegrated completely all the time, but Crota was... Yeah, I dunno."

"But you've seen guardians with scars though, right? Where did those come from? If we're able to regenerate completely then how did the scars form?"

"I'm not sure... I mean, Guardians keep Tattoos, right? So who knows? My guess is just vanity."

"Alright, folks. Fifteen minutes until closing time. Finish yer drinks, then head home," the bartender called. Mal couldn't believe they had stayed that late. He waved over a serving frame and made the request for their bill. It shuffled away to return moments later with a tray and a paper. Mal got his Ghost to pay while the frame mechanically took the glasses and piled them onto the tray. There was barely enough room. When it was done and gone Mal and Bluebird just sat there for a while until the Bartender said "Alright folks, time's up. I'm shutting it down now. Have a good night."

Mal stood, and Bluebird rose with him. She was still stunning, and her glow had only really dimmed. It almost seemed like the natural shimmer of an awoken. Mal grabbed his cloak from the table and then he offered her his arm, which thankfully she took. She leaned into him as they walked, pressing her warm body against his. He could smell her. Many people wouldn't consider that the EXO had an olfactory sense, but they did, even if it was less sophisticated than that of an organic. Bluebird smelled nice.

**[2]** When they got to the door Mal was surprised to see that it was pouring rain. How had he not heard it from inside? It was like a waterfall, you could drown in this rain. He looked over at bluebird, then he draped his cloak around her. She vanished into the depths of it, but he could see her face when she looked up at him questioningly.

"It's a lot of rain," he said in answer. She nodded, but they still stood in the shelter of the doorway for another minute. Eventually Mal broke the silence. "Hey, look. Uh, I've got a place nearby, it's nothing special, but it's better than trying to get all the way back to the tower in this weather."

"Oh?"

"Maybe, do you want to, uh... spend the night?"

Bluebird smiled at him. "Yes, thank you. I'd like that."

The couple practically ran through the rain, stopping under awnings and balconies, and even in doorways. Mal was soaked completely through immediately. Eventually, after almost five minutes of running, stopping and giggling they made it to the apartment complex Mal called home. By then Bluebird was soaked too, despite the cover of the cloak. Her wet white hair plastered to her face in alabaster tendrils, snaking down the line of her nose, under her eye, and along her cheek and jawline. Despite shivering and dripping, Bluebird's grin practically hummed pleasure, even if her teeth did chatter a bit.

Mal fumbled with his key, and struggled not to laugh. Eventually he opened the door and let Bluebird enter first. The room was dark and thankfully dry. It was mostly quiet except for the dripping sound of the duo. Mal pawed around for the light switch, and when it flicked on Bluebird could see that his apartment was actually very nice. There were large paintings on the walls of various styles, and geometrically patterned rugs carpeting the floor. She could see in the back of the room a wall where his guns were hung, and a mannequin for his armour.

"Here, let me take that cloak," Mal said. It peeled off of Bluebird like a second skin, and Mal watched silently was a trickle of water ran down between her breasts. He threw the towel onto a coatrack nearby and said, "wait here, I'll get you a towel."

Bluebird first took off her shoes. Then, while she waited she held her arms crossed beneath her breasts, shivering and drifting through the apartment, examining the art. She was surprised to find that he had a bookshelf, and was examining the titles when he returned. _Hunter of the Heart_. Now where had she heard that title before?

"Here you are," said Mal, draping the towel over her shoulders. "If you want I've got a bathrobe you can change into, and you can sleep in the bed. I'll take the couch."

"...I'm cold, Mal."

"Oh, I'll go turn up the heat."

"Don't go," she said, grabbing his arm at the wrist. She wouldn't look him in the eye.

"Oh. Okay," Mal said. "Do you want to go into the bedroom?"

"I'd like that."

Mal's bedroom was actually not very big. He had been mildly annoyed when he found out that he still needed sleep, even in his EXO body, but at least it was only every few days. The mind needed rest, he supposed, but usually he just dreamed of the Deep Stone Crypt. It never really felt too restful to him.

The room had a double bed in it, and it took up most of the space. There was a window, the blinds casting silver streaks light over the room. Raindrops on the glass made a rhythmic thumping, and the light wavered from the water. Mal didn't turn on the light.

He turned to Bluebird and she took a couple steps back, out of the direct light of the window. Then she let the towel he had wrapped around her fall to her elbows, revealing that she was still wearing her bond. She reached up with one arm and pulled one strap of her dress over her right shoulder, water still dripping from her hair. Her eyes were half lidded, and she looked up at him, her cheek resting on her shoulder and her body turned so that she was light from behind by the blue bird on her arm. Then her other hand reached up and slipped off the other shoulder strap. The dress was so heavy with water it practically slid off of her, revealing small, perky breasts with dark grey pointed nipples and a prickle of goose bumps all over her body. She was naked except for her underwear. She crossed her arms under her breasts and rubbed one slender, pale leg against the other.

"What are you staring at..." she muttered quietly. She couldn't look him in the eye. He didn't know if it was a perfect act or just her. He suspected it was just her. "Come over here."

He did. He stripped off his vest as he went, then his shirt. They fell at his feet in a wet clump, and he wrapped his arms around her. She was cold against his metal skin, and she rested her head on his shoulder. Her arms were up between them resting on his chest, and his hands were stroking a line up and down her back, and feeling the curve of her waist and hips. She nuzzled into him and muttered something quietly, almost closing her eyes.

"What was that?" Mal asked, gently.

"It's just that you're so warm." she murmured. "I said 'your heart must be like a supernova.'"

Cal hummed in response, and the hand tracing the line of her back followed her spine up to her neck, and then her cheek. She looked up at him, eyes still half lidded, and they kissed. It was maybe only a second or two, but it was gentle and sweet. And Mal could feel Bluebird grinning.

When they separated Mal scooped her up into his arms, one under her knees and the other around her shoulder, and walked them both over to the bed. The shadowy lines of the shades did curious things to Bluebird's body when he lay her down on the sheets. She propped herself up on one elbow to cup his cheek with her hand and lead him down into another kiss. This one lasted longer, and she even reached up with her other hand to pull him in deeper.

Mal's hands were on her arms at first, but moved down her sides, and eventually to her breasts. She squeaked a little when he pinched her nipple between forefinger and thumb, but grinned and continued to pull him down onto the bed. Eventually she was laid back completely, and Mal reached up a hand to brush her wet hair away from her face. She just smiled at him when her did. He tried smiling back. It amounted to opening his mouth a little wider.

Bluebird's face was flushed. Her cheeks and nose were very pink, and her eyes were glowing white and reflecting Mal's own red eyes. Her bond too cast light on the both of them granting their dark sides a shining blue outline. Mal pulled away, and at first Bluebird was upset, but she gasped when she felt his fingers tracing down her belly and over her hips to rest on her inner thighs. Biting her lips she looked down into his eyes and spread her legs apart, resting a shapely calf on Mal's shoulder. He pulled her almost transparent underwear, wet from the rain and arousal, aside to reveal her pink flushed lips.

He moved closer, her knee now resting on his shoulder and the calf hooking around onto his back. His hand moved from her pale thigh and a gentle finger began to play with the lips, stroking them, sometimes pinching. He always heard a cute gasp or whimper whenever he pulled the lips apart or found her clitoris. Without warning he leaned forward and nipped it gently between his metal lips. Bluebird gasped, her eyes going wide, the shadows of raindrops trickling down the window moved across her belly, breasts, and face.

Bluebird's smell was getting stronger. It wasn't something earthly, but something alien, like a flower in the Dreaming City. She reached down and pulled his head closer into her, insistently. Mal slid one of his metal fingers into her, but only going up to the second knuckle. She must have still had her hymen. _So that was what all the talk about scars and missing limb was about_, he thought. He also thought for a moment that she _purred_ when he did it, but didn't get enough time to consider it. Her legs clamped around his head, and he began to bite her again while sliding another finger into her. She curled up around him, hugging his head close to her as he began to vigorously piston his fingers in and out of her.

Then Bluebird made a peculiar mewling sound and began to shudder. A spray of juice spilled from her, all over Mal's chin and neck.

Bluebird let go of Mal's head and lay back on the bed, breathing hard and squirming beautifully, her belly still shaking.

"Oh... Thank you... Mal..."

Mal didn't answer. He instead slid her underwear off down her legs, but her didn't bother doing a good job about it, they still clung to one of her ankles. She had a small patch of white pubic hair, a curling bush just above her hairless lips. Mal curled his fingers into it and she looked down at him curiously. Then she watched as he got to his knees and undid his pants. He took them and his underwear off in the same movement, revealing his member to the cool air. He was _very_ proud when Bluebird's eyes widened and her grin took on a nearly insane aspect.

"Malcolm, I don't think I can..." she trailed off as he moved forward, grabbing her hips and moving her up underneath him. His metal penis, a peculiar addition to the EXO, but one Mal appreciated nonetheless, rested on her patch of pubic fuzz. It was almost long enough to reach her belly button. There was no metal skin or anything so strange as that, instead it looked similar to an uncircumcised human penis, only with metal and hard rubber instead of skin. Fluid leaked from the tip. Mal himself had no idea how it was produced or what it was, but he did know this. It wasn't semen, and regardless of that fact there was no way in hell he was going to get Bluebird pregnant.

He moved back a bit and began to slide the head up and down between her lips, and she moaned, grabbing a handful of sheet in the dim night. Eventually he poised himself at her entrance and looked into her eyes. She looked back, then down at the member and back again. She smiled a little nervously and nodded, her breathing coming heavy and her chest and face flushed with blood. She was becoming overall rather purple.

Mal pushed forward with a burst of exhaled breath. The first few inches were easy, but when he reached her hymen Bluebird grunted in discomfort and Mal took a moment to wait and look her in the eye. Only one was visible right now, her hair had fallen back over the other one. She closed her eyes, took a deep shuddering breath, and then nodded quickly. He pressed in, and she groaned. It was a mix of pleasure and discomfort, and he pulled out. There was a little blood on his penis, though not as much as he had been expecting. He supposed Guardians healed fast anyway.

"Are you okay?" he asked. His voice sounded hoarse.

"Y-yeah... It hurt a little, but I'll be fine in a second. Your penis is so... big."

"Thanks..."

Bluebird giggled. "I don't think you can take credit for that..."

"No? Well, I can take credit for this though," he said and pushed himself back in.

"Mal? Wai- ohh..." Her eyes closed, and she cupped her breasts with her hands, squeezing tightly as he pushed his penis up to the base. He could feel the head of his penis pressing against her cervix, but somehow he managed to fit all the way in. Bluebird bit her bottom lip again, and hummed. Mal leaned forwards, resting his elbows on either side of her. She looked up at him and wrapped her arms around his back, pulling herself up into a deep kiss as Mal began to move back and forth inside her. She wrapped her legs around him, crossing the ankles and holding on like her life depended on it. Her moans grew louder as Mal moved faster and harder, almost becoming screams of pleasure. The room filled with the sound of her wet vagina and ass slapping against Mal's hips.

Mal could feel the pressure building up. It was inevitable, he knew it, and he both did and didn't want it to come.

"Bluebird, I'll.. I'm gonna..."

"M-me t-too..." she stammered, gasping between words.

Then she began to make that strange mewling sound again and pulled him deep into her with her legs, crushing herself against his body, grinding her vagina and clitoris against his pelvis. He grunted and his metal penis spasmed inside her, flooding her with hot fluid while she sprayed his groin with her own juices.

Bluebird could feel Mal's hot ejaculate filling her womb, and trickling through her vagina. It was like the feeling she'd had when taking that first drink. Electric. Hot. It was almost scalding. Mal collapsed onto her, and they shuddered together for a moment. Bluebird relaxed her death grip on Mal's body. Her legs slowly slid down the backs of his thighs, and her arms moved down below his shoulder blades. Mal had let himself fall on top of her during their combined orgasm, and Bluebird was finding it hard to breathe despite the comfortable pressure. She sighed.

"Mal," she said in a tight voice. "Malcolm, I can't breathe."

"Oh, sorry," Mal said, sliding out of her and rolling onto his back beside her. A drizzle of liquid came with him, though at this point Bluebird wasn't sure if it was hers or Mal's. Both she supposed.

He put an arm under her, and she snuggled closer, pressing her breasts into his side, an arm resting on his chest and a leg curled over his hips and bending at the knee to rest her small foot between his thighs. She could feel his wet member against her leg. Her face was buried in Mal's neck. He liked the way she looked at him with only one eye. He liked the way She smelled right now. She liked the way he smelled too, even though it was faint and hard to pick out. They lay like that for a while, not moving, just listening to the rain and each other's breathing, and being in love together. They must have stayed like that until morning.

* * *

**I almost feels weird asking if you want to review this, but I'm a sucker for feedback. Tell me if you liked it, or if you even noticed it. Whatever.**


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